1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an improved data processing system and, in particular, to a method and apparatus for enabling multiparty interactivity in a distributed processing system. Still more particularly, the present invention provides a method and apparatus for providing a virtual workplace with fully rendered three-dimensional models.
2. Description of Related Art
The worldwide network of computers commonly known as the “Internet” has seen explosive growth in the last several years. Mainly, this growth has been fueled by the introduction and widespread use of the worldwide web (WWW) of computers providing entertaining and educational content, as well as advertisements and electronic storefronts, to users of so-called “web browsers.” A web browser is a program that is executed on a graphical user interface (GUI) in a client computer to seamlessly load documents from a network server via the Internet and display them by means of the GUI.
One area that has seen slow growth over the years is personal communication over the Internet. Current telecommuting and telepresence technology is focused on video conferencing. Even with the innovations in high-speed modems, broadband Internet access, data compression, and streaming video and audio, video conferencing uses significant network and system resources to provide live motion of a person. Often, due to limited available bandwidth, video conferencing is limited to person-to-person communication, rather than tens of people gathering together, as in a typical business or organizational meeting.
Furthermore, in a video conference a person typically sits still in front of a camera with very limited movement, except for the mouth. The speed of transmission is insufficient to keep pace with the speed of mouth movement in standard speech. Video adds limited value beyond providing a static picture of a participant. Emotional expression is useful; however, emotion is more efficiently conveyed through voice information and body motion.
Still further, video conferencing does little to place the participants in the same environment. The participants do not interact with one another except by speech and facial expressions. Application sharing and information and data exchange take place in a separate interface, which detracts from eye contact, a strong point of video conferencing.
In the meantime, the gaming industry has inspired several advancements in technology. The popularity of first-person perspective games is responsible for three-dimensional (3D) graphics engines capable of producing lifelike models, fast rendering, smooth motion, and realistic environments. Current first-person perspective games also take advantage of these 3D graphics engines and 3D positional audio to provide a sense of immersion into the virtual world created for the game. In addition, video cards with 3D graphics accelerators have become commonplace. In fact, many motherboards are manufactured with built-in 3D graphics accelerators and 3D sound capability.
Another trend in the computer video game industry is to provide multiplayer video games. Using a massively multiplayer computer game, a player may connect to a server and play with or against thousands of other players. Multiplayer computer games make use of the processing power of the client computers to render 3D models of objects to create a virtual environment as well as all of the participants within the environment. This heavy use of distributed processing reduces the amount of data transmitted through the server and, thus, the network.
Typically, a participant controls the movement of a character, which is a three-dimensional representation or “avatar” of the participant. This movement is communicated to the server as a vector made up of a current position, a direction, and a speed. The movement of other objects, such as projectiles, is communicated in the same manner. The server then distributes this movement information to the other clients, which handle the movement of the objects appropriately. With the minimal use of bandwidth to communicate movement, multiplayer games are designed to operate effectively with only a 28.8 kbaud modem connection and still have enough bandwidth to handle thousands of players connected to the same server or to supplement the experience with voice communication.
Online multiplayer games provide a feeling of immersion into a virtual world, which creates a forum for role-playing, conflict, and social interaction. However, online multiplayer games do not provide an environment for serious exchange of data or ideas, other than by text chat or voice communication. Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide a method and apparatus for sharing information in a virtual environment.